Pledges of support continue to pour into the vice presidential bid of Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. Retired generals, colonels and other ranking officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines late Tuesday threw their “unequivocal support” to his bid for the second highest position.

Retired uniformed officers, led by former AFP Chief of Staff Benjamin Santiago hosted a dinner for the senator in Makati City to express their support to his candidacy.

Santiago said his group is composed of four former chiefs of staff, three former major service commanders and other major commanders of the different forces of the AFP.

“We are privileged to introduce to you the next Vice President of the Republic of the Philippines, Senator Bongbong Marcos,” Defensor declared to the roaring applause of the more than 200 people in attendance.

“Si Bongbong is matagal na sa pulitika at I have seen, I have felt what it is like to be a candidate and I will tell you napakalayo ng lamang nya sa mga kalaban na kapag natalo si Bongbong ngayong halalan, sya ay dinaya,” he said.

He further stated that even if Marcos is leading in the surveys, the results do not reflect the true sentiment of the voters. “Nakikita natin na mataas sya sa survey pero binabawasan pa yan kasi natatakot ang mga kalaban. Masyadong madikit,” he said.

Defensor also thanked Marcos for taking care of his sister, his presidential running mate Miriam Defensor Santiago, in the campaign. “I have never someone take care of my sister in the campaign and that is the reason why I am returning the favor,” he said.

Marcos, in his speech, expressed his gratitude to the endorsement of the retired officers saying they are the prime example of his message for national unity.

“You are the only people in government who have pledged to lay their lives on the line and you have shown what unity can do for the country’s welfare and this is my very message to the Filipino people – that our nation can be great once again if only we forget about the divisiveness of politics and work together to give our people a progressive future,” he said.